Young’s Tip For Up And Comers

When it comes to burgeoning drivers in Ontario, Scott Young has definitely been the talk of the town as of late. The pilot’s been busy honing his craft and has also been making an impact at Woodbine Mohawk Park. He recently took the time to offer some advice for up and coming pilots.

This past weekend, Young sat down for a brief discussion with Woodbine Entertainment’s Monique Vág during ‘Woodbine Racing Live.’ The pair addressed various topics, including the 28-year-old’s recent driving milestone .

“It feels excellent,” Young said about reaching the 1,000-win benchmark earlier this month. “It’s definitely a fantastic milestone. I’m very fortunate and I appreciate it a lot.”

For anyone that isn’t aware, Young has been a fixture in the southern Ontario racing scene for decades now. Although he’s south of 30, Young is definitely ‘old hat’ in the province’s Standardbred industry. He was born and raised in the game, as his father, trainer Bob Young, is an institution when it comes to the local racing scene.

Given his exposure and experience in the industry, Scott has formed his own opinion in regard to what it takes to break through in the catch-driving realm. Although talent and skill in the sulky are always paramount, Young stated that a solid work ethic and strong social skills can be equally as important.

“You have to show up to work, that’s a main one. You can’t be taking too many days off and not showing up for drives, and things like that,” Young said.

“Show up to qualifiers, stay humble, and just talk to people. People like to have a conversation. They don’t want you meeting them at the door or anything like that. You go down and talk to them about the horse, what they want, what they feel, and just try to be personable and professional, at least that’s the way I feel about it.”

Scott Young, pictured at The Raceway at Western Fair District on January 15, 2020 after recording his 1,000th career driving victory.